Portable USB Linux distros are wonderful go-anywhere Linuxes for troubleshooting and repair. The catch is older hardware doesn't always support booting from a USB stick-- but there is a workaround called Plop Boot Manager.

When it comes to corporate shenanigans, FOSS supporters tend to be rather naive. Bruce Byfield explains that what can be attributed to laziness, corporate politics, incompetence, and shortsightedness should not be attributed to conspiracy.